Method of inert-arc welding of stainless tubing



Sept. 29, 1953 w. s. SCHAEFER METHOD OF INERT-ARC WELDING OF STAINLESS TUBING 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 19, 1948 JNVENTOR. WALTER SSCHAEFER. "M M1? ATTORNEYS.

Sept. 29, 1953 w. s. SCHAEFER 2,654,014

METHOD OF INERT-ARC WELDING OF STAINLESS TUBIN Filed Feb. 19, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. WALTER SSCHAEFER.

BY flag 7b J7 TORNE'Y-S.

Patented Sept. 29, 1953 METHOD OF INERT STAINLES ARC WELDING OF S TUBING Walter S. Schaefer, Euclid, Ohio, assignor to Republic Steel Corporation,

Cleveland, Ohio, a

corporation of New Jersey Application February 19, 1948, Serial N 0. 9,575 2 Claims. (01. 219-6) This invention relates to the continuous welding of longitudinal metallic seams such as in the formation of seamless tubing from blanks.

An object of the invention is to make a high quality weld at high speeds on such materials as stainless steel, for example. A more specific object is to maintain a low, smooth, bright inside weld bead.

It is an object to exclude air and prevent oxidation or corrosion. A further object is to surround the welding electrode and the abutting surfaces being welded economically with helium or other inert gas. Still another object of the invention is to promote safety of welding, eliminate flames and prevent explosions, injuries to operators, and damage to welds, such as may occur when employing a reducing atmosphere.

and to avoid skip welds.

An additional object is to cause the electrode to burn away evenly and at a relatively slow rate only.

Other and further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

In carrying out my invention, after the edges of the seam at the portion of the tubing where inert gas is confined and the tube is moved longitudinally so that successive portions of the tube seam are heated by the arc and welded while the interior of the portion of the tube being welded is filled with the inert gas to obtain a bright bead on the inside of the tubing Owing to the relative motion of the arc and the tubing, there would ordinarily be an arc trail with the are making a relatively small acute angle with the tubing. In order to avoid this and make the arc perpendicular to the tubing, with but a slight trail, the arc is deflected. This is preferably accomplished by producing an electromagnetic field transverse to the arc and transverse to the direction of motion of the tubing. The field is given such polarity and strength as to deflect the are nearly to the perpendicular position where the tubing is traveling horizontally. In this manner a maximum of arc stability and a minimum of tendency to wander are attained.

In performing the novel method, a conventional type of tube welding machine may be employed having rolls which convey the skelp and form it into blank tubes having open seams with conventional seam-closing or welding rolls and burr rollers and cutters, except that the welding rolls are insulated and composed of nonmagnetic material. The welding head employed is provided with conventional automatic mechanism for feeding the welding rod and maintaining a predetermmed arc length by regulating the position of the weld tip to keep the arc voltage constant. In addition, the Welding head is pro vided with a nozzle surrounding the tip of the welding rod for supplying an inert gas, such as helium. Furthermore, in accordance with the invention a novel mandrel and mandrel supporting rod are provided. The mandrel rod is hollow and has an inlet for helium or other inert gas at the trailing end where the rod is supported by a bracket projecting through the open seam as the weld is made.

synthetic or plastic, adapted to seal or close the space within the tube blank under the welding head and conserve the inert gas flowing into the space through the outlet openings of the hollow mandrel rod.

netic field with lines of magnetic flux intersecting the arc and tending to divert it longitudinally.

and with the tubing broken away to expose the mandrel rod;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary diagram showing :the arc director and welding rolls in greater detail;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the apparatus of Fig. 13;

Fig. 5 is a partial view of-alternati-ve arc direc: tor employing permanent magnets instead of solenoids; and

Figs. 6, '7 and 8 are fragmentary diagrams illustrating the principle of operation :of the apparatus.

Like reference characters are utilized throu hout the drawing to designate like parts.

. As illustratedschematically in the drawing, the tubing is formed by bending skelps ,H into the form of tube blanks I2 having an open-seam cleft it. The open seam cleft is welded shut to -form seamless tubing M. The welding is accomplished by means of an are drawn between an electrode i6 and the tube ablank I2.

In order to preserve brightness of the inside welding bead, particularly in the welding of stainless steel, the space H directly under the are 55 is filled with an inert gas, such as helium :or argon, and for the sake of economy the gas is confined to a relatively short length of tubing adjacent the are 15. Thus, the heat of the arc is maintained solelyby the :flowof electrical current and'is not augmented by ccmbustion of gases or metal surrounding thearc. In order to stabilize the are 15 and to reduce the arc trail rorimproving the welding operation in other respects, the arc is deflected very nearly to a vertical position with a very slight arc trail,-as illustrated in Fig. 7. This is done by directing magnetic flux through the are in a direction transverse thereto and transverse to the direction of travel of the tube blank l2 by providing a pair of electromagnetic pole races ,lBon either side of the arc Hi.

Although my invention is not limited to the use of any particular apparatus, the method thereof maybe carried out in conjunction with the welding of tubing in automatic continuouswelding machines similar to those already in use.

In the apparatus illustrated in the drawings, there are rolls 19 for forming the ,skelp H into the tube blanks 12 in the conventional manner. There is a seam guide 2| for maintaining the seam cleft l3 uppermost and .there is a welding head v22 for producing the electric are 1.5. A conventional mandrel 23 maybe employed carrying inner burr rollers .24.

However, for supporting the mandrel 2 3 and injecting inert gas, such as helium, into the space within the tube blank 12 under the welding head 22, a hollow mandrel rod 25 is provided having an inlet pipe 26at one end connected to a supply of inert gas such ashelium, not shown, andhaving lateral openings 21 at the other end at the position under the welding head '22. vFor confining the inert gas inside the tube blank 12 to the space in the immediate proximity to where the weld is being made, sealing cups 28 and 29 are mounted on the mandrel rod 25. The sealing up 2.8 and 29 are composed of r s lientmaterial.

. solenoid winding and closing acircuit to the magnetizing winding such as natural or synthetic rubber or plastic or the like, and are of sufficient size to engage the inner surface of the blank 12 and seal the space around the openings 2?.

The mandrel rod 25 may be supported in a conventional manner as by means of a bracket 3i extending through the open seam clef-t 13.

Fine welding head 22 or inert-arc torch includes a weld rod or electrode is of high melting metal such as tungsten, for example, and suitable conventional mechanism, represented by a rectangle 32, for feeding the weld rod l6 and for automatically maintaining a predetermined length of the are 1.5. As will be understood by those skilled in the art, such conventional apparatus may be arranged for causing the weld rod to move up or down to lengthen orshorten the arc as the voltage of the are departs from a predetermined value, suchas eighteen volts, for example.

The welding head 22 also includes a nozzle 33 surrounding the weld rod or electrode is so as to leave an annular orifice 34,as shown in Figs. 6, '7 and .8, through which the helium may issue. The nozzle 3.3 is connected to ahose 3:": connected to a source of helium .or other inert gas, not shown.

It will be understood that a suitable cable 38 is provided for connecting the weld rod is to asuitable source of welding current, such as a direct current generator 31, for example, having one terminal connected to the cable 36 and the other terminal grounded to the tube blank i2 or to suitable rollers supporting it. Preferably, the positive terminal of the generator 3'! is grounded and the negative terminal is connected to the cable .35; but my invention is not limited thereto and the connections may be reversed or alternating current may also be employed.

For deflecting the electric arc to the position of slight arc trail an arc director ll is provided. As illustrated in Figs. '3 and 4, such arc director comprises a yoke member 42 composed f suitable, magnetizable,relatively permeable material, such as a soft -iron, f or example, having an air gap with pole faces IS on either side of the tip as of the weld rod 16. The magnetic yoke 32 is ,provided with a winding 34 connected to a source of direct-current d5, preferably through a rheostat 46 for adjusting the magnetomotive force of the winding 35. A relay 41 may be provided for demagnetizing the arc director il until the arc if: has been struck in order to prevent the are from being blown off the seam when it is started. The-relay 4? includes a pair of normally open stationary contacts A8, movable contacts 49 and a El for lifting the contacts 4%) 14 whenever the relay operating winding 5! is energized. As illustrated in Fig. 1, the winding 5| may be connected in series with the arc welding generator 31 so as to hold the contacts 18 closed whenever :the generator 31 is supplying an arc. Preferably the contacts as are of the slowclosing quick-opening type, well known to those skilled in the art, in order that ample opportunity will be given for striking the are before the arc director comes into operation.

lhe apparatus shown in Fig. 1 may also includezsuitable conventional elements such as sidepressure and propelling rollers 52. Theside pressure rolers in the immediate proximity of the welding head 22, however, namely welding rollers 53 are of unique construction in accordance with my invention. Conveying rollers 54 and burr rollers 55 may be provided, as well as burr .cutters 5.5 .allof which are conventional.

The side pressure and welding rollers 53 are preferably insulated from their supporting shafts or carried in insulating bearings and are composed of non-magnetic material in order to avoid interfering with the operation of the arc director 4|. The welding rollers 53, also, in addition to being non-"nagnetic and insulated, are preferably provided with cooling-water cavities 5? adapted to be supplied with cooling water from a source, not shown, through a spout 58. An overflow pipe 59 may be provided.

The same means are preferably employed also for cooling the magnetic yoke 42 to prevent its temperature rising to such a high value that it will become non-magnetic. Cooling fins 6| may be secured to the yoke 42 and positioned in such a manner as to project into the cooling water trough 57 of the welding rollers 53. The arc director M is supported by means of a suitable bracket, not shown, which is attached to a stationary portion of the apparatus. My invention does not exclude alternative cooling arrange ments such as air blasts directed against the cooling fins 6I or directly against the magnetic yoke 42. Having the pole faces I8 relatively close to the are I 5 facilitates control thereof, but my invention is not limited thereto. If a sufficiently powerful magnetizing coil 44 is employed, the air gap between the pole faces i 8 may be increased sufficiently so that the yoke 42 will not be unduly heated by the arc, and in this case the cooling fins 6I may not be needed. A nozzle 62 may be provided for cooling the tubing by water spray after it has passed the welding head 22 and the weld has been completed.

When a skelp I I is being formed into seamless tubing, it first passes through the forming rollers I9, then between the side-pressure rollers 52 and finally the Welding rollers 53. The open seam cleft I3 is forced closed by the welding rollers 53 simultaneously with the heating of the edges of the seam by the arc I5. The heating of the arc melts the metal at the seam so as to form a weld '63, the outer bead of which is trimmed by the burr cutters 56 and the inner bead of which is rolled by the inner burr roller 24.

The fiow of helium into the space I! excludes air or corrosive atmosphere from the space within the blank I2 and results in the formation of a clean, low, smooth, bright inner bead 54. Likewise, the flow of helium through the nozzle orifice 34 surrounds the electrode I6 and the space around the outer surface of the blank I2 adjacent the are I5 with inert gas to exclude air or corrosive atmosphere.

Without control of the are by means of the arc director M, the are I5, as shown in Fig. 6, tends to trail behind the welded portion 63 of the tube I4 as it leaves the position of the welding head 22. There is a molten pool 65 under the end of the are I5 which is relatively far away from the point directly under the weld rod IS. Most of the puddle 65 is outside the envelope of shielding gas which issues from the orifice 34 in the nozzle 33. Under these conditions the weld puddle becomes oxidized.

Since the weld control mechanism 32 is designed to maintain a constant arc length the weld tip 33 is brought perilously close to the tubing blank I2 in order to maintain the desired arc length. At times the edges of the open seam I3 may come closer to the weld tip 43 than the pool 65 and the arc I5 will skip to another point on the blank, leaving gaps in the weld seam which have not been closed. Furthermore, the feeding mechanism for the weld rod I6 will be subjected to violent changes in control impulses tending to cause the Weld rod to be moved down so forcibly as to either burn a hole in the tubing or strike the tubing and cause the end of the weld rod I6 to be broken off. Furthermore, the tubing in the case of stainless steel tubing, for example, may be contaminated by direct contact with the weld rod, causing sputtering, giving a variable and gassy weld.

When the arc director 4I is energized, the are is deflected as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, notwithstanding the speed of travel of the tube blanks. In magnetic devices heretofore known magnetic flux is produced in the direction of arc current flow. The magnetic field produced by the arc director described herein, however, is perpendicular both to the welding current flow and the direction of are trail. The polarities of the pole faces are so chosen that the reaction between the current flowing in the arc I5 and the flux crossing between the pole faces I8 will exert a force on the arc in the direction opposite to the direction of motion to the tubing blank I2. For example, the weld electrode I6 is negative with respect to the work, as indicated in Fig. 3. The left-hand pole face will be given north polarity and the right-hand pole face will be given south polarity, as indicated in the drawing. If the polarity of the weld generator 31 is reversed, the po larity of the current source 45 supplying the magnetizing coil 44 will also be reversed.

The rheostat 46 may be so adjusted as to give sufficient magnetomotive force to make the arc I5 vertical, as shown in Fig. 8. However, the magnetomotive force is made slightly less so as to produce a substantially erect arc with a slight arc trail, as shown in Fig. 7. This adjustment has been found to give greater stability as it diminishes the tendency for the arc to wander longitudinally or transversely and also eliminates arc streamers 66, as shown in Fig. 8. If the arc has a-slight trail, as shown in Fig. "1, the electrode tip 43 is still substantially the maximum distance from the tube blank I2 at which a predetermined arc length is obtained. Consequently, there is ample space between the arc tip 43 and the tube blank I2 to insure reliable, uniform operation of the arc and avoid any possibility of interference between the moving tubing and the electrode tip. The tungsten electrode burns away evenly and at only a very slow rate.

Although my invention has been described in connection with direct-current welding, it will be understood that it is not limited thereto and that when the source of welding current 31 takes the form of an alternating current generator or transformer, the energizing source 45 or the arc director winding 44 will also take the form of an alternating current source of the same frequency, the yoke 42 in this case preferably being laminated. By retaining the proper connections of the winding 44 to obtain the same relative polarity at any instant, as indicated in Fig. 3, of the are current and the arc director, the same erecting action on the arc will be obtained, as discussed in connection with Figs. 6, '7 and 8.

Alternatively the arc director may be rendered more compact by employing permanent magnets, as illustrated in Fig. 5. In this case an arc director II is provided, comprising a pair of magnetic yokes I2 and I3 having confronting pole faces I8, as in the arrangement of Figs. 3 and 4,

but composed. ofv a'suitable; permanent-magnet material having a high coercive force and high residual magnetization, such as an alloy of approximately 8%v aluminum, 14%. nickel, 24 cobait, 3% copper and: the remainder iron, such as described in the March 1944 issue oi Electrical Engineering on pages 100-104. llhe flux intensity between the pole faces 18 may be adjusted by any suitable adjusting. means, such as a ma netic screw Hi threaded at one end of the: yoke member 72 and longitudinally movable: with. respect to thev confronting end of the other yoke member73l While the invention has been described as embodied in concrete form and as operating in a specific manner in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, it should be understood that. the invention is not. limited thereto, since various modifications will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art without depart ing from the spirit of the invention, the scope of which is set forth in the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

l. A method or welding a longitudinal scam in metallic tube'blanks which comprises the steps of injecting inert gas into the interior of the tube blank at a certain portion thereof, confining the inert gas in said portion of the blank, striking an are against the seam at. said portion of the blank, maintaining the heat of the arc solely by flow of electrical current, causing relative motion between the arc and the blank, whereby the inert gas is injected in successive diiierent portions of the blank, passing a magnetic field through the arc transversely to the arc and to the said direction of motion, of such polarity in relation to the polarity of the are current as to apply a force to the arc in a direction opposite to the relative direction of motion or the blank and of insufficient strength to hold the arc vertical but sufficient to hold the are substantially erect with a slight arc trail, and thereby electromagneth cally deflecting the arc in a direction opposite to the relative direction of motion of the blank, whereby the angle of arc trail is diminished and the seam is welded by a stabilized are as the blank progresses relative to the arc notwithstanding the inert condition surrounding the arc,

8'. the are being strained electromagnetically to prevent it from wandering.

2. A method of. welding the longitudinal scam in a metallic tube blank which comprises the steps of injecting helium into the interior of the tube blank at a certain portion thereof, confining the helium in said portion of the blank, striking an are against the seam at said portion of the blank, maintaining the heat of the arc sole- 1yby'fiow of electrical current, surrounding the arc with helium, causing longitudinal travel of the blank whereby the. helium is injected in successiyely d-iiierent portions of the blank and the seam is welded by the arcas the blank progresses, passing a magnetic field through the arc transversely tothe arc and to the said. direction of travel of such polarity in relation to the polarity of the arc current as to apply a force to the arc in a direction opposite to the relative direction I of travel. and. of insuificient strength to hold the arc vertical but suflicient to hold the arc sub.- stantially erect. with. a slight are trail, andthereby electromagnetically deflecting the arc in a direction. opposite to the relative direction of travel of the blank, whereby the angle of arc trail isv diminished and. the seam is Welded by a stabilized are as the blank progresses relative tothe arc notwithstanding the inert condition surrounding the arc, the are being strained electromagnetically to prevent it from wandering.

WALTER S.

References Cited in. the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 388,245 Bernardos "Aug. 21, 1888 396,270 Cofiln .Jan. 15, 1889 510,777 Coffin Dec. 12, 1893 1,580,020 Cutler et a1. Apr. 6, 1926 1,746,081 Hobart Feb. 4, 1930 1,792,243 Richter Feb. 10, 1931 1,796,969 Strobel Mar. 17, 1931 1,854,536 Wilson Apr. 19, 1932 2,053,417 Brace Sept. 8, 1936 2,405,542 Wassell Aug. 6, 1946 2,422,305 Kopec June 17, 1947 2,433,296 Schaefer Dec. 23, 1947 

